Goodbye For Now
by FairyWings101
Summary: HPHG Hermione has a rare disease and she must tell Harry her feelings for him before its too late. And will Ron's love for Hermione make him do something that he'll regret? Only 1 way to find out:R&R! COMPLETED NOW WITH ALT. ENDING
1. The Life Exchanging Spell

Goodbye For Now

A/N: This is my 1st fic, hope you like it! Please review when you're done!

17 year old Hermione Granger stepped onto the Hogwarts Express, holding a deep secret within her. A secret so terrible that no one knew, not even her parents or her friends.

_Flashback_

_Hermione sat in the waiting room of St. Mungo's, awaiting the results of her examination. She had been feeling extremely tired the past few weeks and had begun vomiting last week, so she decided to get a checkup. She knew she certainly wasn't pregnant, so she wondered what was wrong with her._

"_Ms. Granger?" A motherly-looking healer entered the room, looking solemn._

"_Yes, that would be me," Hermione replied. "Do you have the results?"_

"_Yes, I need to speak to you in private about that," the healer said. "Follow me."_

_Hermione stood up and followed the healer to another room a few halls down. The healer opened the door for her and she entered, sitting down on an armchair by the healer's desk. The healer sat down behind her desk and cleared her throat._

"_Ms. Granger, you have an extremely rare wizard disease called catonen," the healer began. "Do you have a pet cat or kitten?"_

"_Yes, but I've had him for 4 years already,"Hermione replied, confused._

"_Well, your cat also has catonen, which is a rare bacteria found in only 1 out of 150 cats, and when a person comes in contact with an infected cat, they also get the bacteria, but in a worse form. It slowly takes over your body's systems,"the healer explained._

"_But why did I only begin getting the symptoms recently?"Hermione asked._

"_It takes a long, slow time for the bacteria to infect your body, so even though you might've gotten it years ago, it only began showing up a few weeks ago,"the healer said, and she began looking extremely sad._

"_Well, what's the cure for it?"Hermione asked, slightly worried at the healer's expression._

_The healer bit her lip, not responding._

"_What's wrong? I mean, there must be a cure, right?" Hermione asked, becoming more worried every second._

_The healer took a long, deep breath. "There...is no cure."_

_Hermione gasped. "That can't be! There must be a cure!"she exclaimed, gripping the side of the desk so tightly that her knuckles turned white._

"_I'm terribly sorry,"the healer said quietly. _

_Hermione burst into tears. "How can this be? What do I do?"she sobbed_. _The healer was crying too since she also lost her daughter to this horrible disease. She stood up and walked around the desk to Hermione. She bent down and hugged her gently_, _remembering the way she hugged her daughter when her daughter found out about the disease._

"_I'm sorry to break down like this," Hermione said after a few minutes, when she calmed down a bit._

"_Don't say that dear, you have every right to cry,"the healer said._

"_How much longer do I have to live?"Hermione asked quietly._

"_About 6 months, but you have to live here for those 6 months,"the healer replied._

"_I see,"Hermione said. "But can I just go to Hogwarts one last time on September 1st?"_

"_Well...I'm not perfectly sure, but I suppose you can,"the healer replied._

"_Thank you so much for everything,"Hermione said. "I'll be going now."_

"_All right, goodbye,"the healer said, but she seemed to be thinking of something else, so Hermione apparated out of the room and back to her apartment._

_End Flashback_

"Hey Hermione over here!"a familiar voicecalled to her and she turned her head to the source of the voice. Ron Weasley waved to her from the other entrance of the train and she waved back, making her way over there. Ron, who was 6 foot 3, could be easily spotted anywhere, so Hermione got there shortly even though the train was extremely crowded.

They went into their usual compartment with Ginny, who had also grown a lot since the last time they saw each other, so now she stood half a head taller than Hermione, who was 5 foot 5.

Hermione noticed that Harry Potter wasn't there, so she asked Ron, "Is Harry coming?"

"I don't know, I didn't see him at the station,"he replied. Hermione felt disappointed that she couldn't see Harry one last time, since she had something for him.

Suddenly, the door opened and Harry stepped in, looking as though he'd just gotten into a fight with someone. His glasses were broken, his hair messier than ever, and his robes were dirty.

Hermione, Ron, and Ginny were shocked at the sight of him, but Hermione was the first to react, saying, "What on earth happened to you?"

Harry, who was trying to clean his robes, looked up at Hermione's voice and he gaped at how pretty she'd become, since he hadn't seen her or any of them all summer, thanks to his uncle. He noticed that her hair was no longer bushy, but smooth and shiny, and her teeth were all perfectly even. Ron and Ginny had the same reaction when she visited them at the Burrow over the summer, but now they were quite used to her new look. Harry, though, was absolutely amazed at her new look, even though he had a crush on her for so long already, ever since they rode on Buckbeak together in their 3rd year.

"Er...Harry, you might want to close your mouth before flies zoom in,"Ron said, trying to keep a straight face, since he already knew about Harry's crush on Hermione and he thought Harry was extremely dumb not to see that Hermione also liked him back.

"Hi Hermione, nothing happened to me, my uncle was just trying to keep me from going back to Hogwarts," Harry replied when he could finally speak again. "Er...what's that spell for my glasses again?"

Hermione rolled her eyes and took out her wand. "_Oculus Reparo_," she flicked her wand and fixed his glasses. "And I'll just fix your robes also. _Dustivlo Removus_," and his robes became sparkling clean.

"Thanks Hermione,"Harry saidHermione looked at him and smiled. "Don't worry about it. Just be more careful next time."

_She's probably only saying that as a friend,_ Harry thought, disappointed. _But this year, I'll tell her._

The food trolley came, and they bought everything on it, from Cauldron Cakes to Pumpkin Pasties. Ron immediately began stuffing himself, and Harry and Ginny rolled their eyes, but Hermione felt like crying, remembering the first time that they met in 1st year, and Ron was also stuffing himself like this.

_This'll be the last time I see him like this, _Hermione thought sadly, and a few tears started rolling down her cheeks, but she quickly brushed them away, hoping that nobody noticed, but Harry did see it, and he decided to talk to her later on, when no one was around.

The train soon stopped at the Hogsmeade station and the 4 of them boarded a thestral-drawn carriage to Hogwarts. Hermione's plan was this: she would eat the feast with the rest of the students, go to Dumbledore's office to tell him about her situation, then somehow give Harry the gift before she got her belongings and left the grounds so she could apparate to St. Mungo's.

Ron and Ginny began arguing about who should keep Pig after Hogwarts, and Harry started sorting out his wizard cards from the Chocolate Frogs, but Hermione stayed silent, her hands clasped on her lap. Harry glanced at her every once in a while, but when she met his gaze, he turned away, blushing.

Soon, the carriages reached the entrance to the castle, so they went into the Great Hall for the Sorting and the feast. Ron gazed longingly at the empty plates, and the other 3 snickered, pulling him to his seat.

The first years entered not long after, looking extremely nervous and tripping on their robes. They were all sorted, from Adveron, Jamie to Zuroski, Bella. Then, Dumbledore made his usual welcoming speech, but Harry wasn't listening, he was scribbling a note to Hermione on a small piece of parchment. When he finished, he tucked it into his pocket, since Colin Creevey was watching him curiously. They all dug in when the food appeared, but Hermione hardly ate at all, she just had to take in the friendly air of the Great Hall one last time. She was also trying to figure out how and when to give Harry the gift.

When the feast was done, the prefects began leading the 1st years to their dormitories, so Harry had to get to Hermione before it got too crowded. He spotted her leaving the Great Hall behind a group of loud, chatty 5th year Hufflepuffs. He caught up to her and said, "Here, read this later" stuffing the paper into her hand, then he went to find Ron, leaving a startled Hermione standing there. She made her way to Dumbledore's office, but when she got there, she realized that she didn't know the password.

"Er...pumpkin pasty?"she tried. The statue remained still. She tried several different candy names before she heard her name being called. She turned around and saw Dumbledore walking towards her.

"Hello, Miss Granger, what can I do for you?"he asked pleasantly.

"Well, um...I need to talk to you about something,"she said uncertainly.

"Very well, we can talk in my office,"he turned around and said, "Reeses Pieces." Hermione was surprised that the password was a muggle candy. As they went up the stairs, Dumbledore said, "I seem to be getting attached to muggle candies these days." Hermione nodded, and they entered into the room.

"Would you like anything to drink, Miss Granger?"Dumbledore asked as soon as Hermione had settled down in an armchair that she had conjured up.

"No thank you,"she said politely. "I just need to talk to you about something."

"Ah, yes. What is it?"Dumbledore asked.

"Well, I'm not sure where to begin, but..."she stopped and took a long, deep breath, tears threatening to trickle down her pale cheeks. "I have catonen and I.....I have to live in St. Mungo's for the remaining time."

Dumbledore looked at her sadly. "I see, Miss Granger. Well, will you be leaving tonight?" Hermione nodded silently. Dumbledore stood up and went over to Fawkes.

"Please take Miss Granger outside of the grounds when the clock strikes 12,"he said quietly. Then, he turned back to Hermione. "I'm sorry this had to happen to the brightest witch in Hogwarts." Suddenly, Fawkes nipped his shoulder.

"What is it Fawkes?"he asked patiently. Fawkes flew over to the bookcase and pulled out an old, blue book, then flew over to Dumbledore's desk, laying it open on a page. Dumbledore walked over quickly. His deep eyes scanned the page quickly, while Hermione watched in confusion.

"Ah, yes Fawkes, you are a most clever phoenix,"he said when he finished skimming over it.

"Sorry Professor, but what is that?"Hermione asked.

"This may help you with your disease,"Dumbledore replied. Hermione's eyes widened. "Wh-what?"

"Yes, come here and I will explain."Dumbledore beckoned to her. Hermione went over to the desk.

"You see, your disease has no cure, but you may live for several more years depending on how this procedure turns out,"Dumbledore explained.

"But how is that possible?"Hermione was almost in hysterics.

"Well, I will reduce years of my life and give them to you. I have lived quite long already and you deserve to live also,"Dumbledore said.

Hermione gasped. "No you can't sir! The wizarding world needs you!"

Dumbledore laid a hand on her shoulder. "Miss Granger, as I said, I have lived quite well already, and since Voldemort is already gone, all will be well."

"But what if there are more dark wizards around? What will the wizarding world do then?"Hermione didn't want to die, but she felt that it would be better for Dumbledore to stay than her.

"I don't suppose they will come out of hiding anytime soon, so we are quite safe,"Dumbledore answered. "Why don't we read the steps for the spell? And then you can decide what you want."

Hermione nodded, but she knew that she could never say yes. She stepped forward and began reading.

_The Life Exchanging Spell:_

_The life exchanging spell, otherwise known as lifotem extorus, will allow the giver to transfer years of his life to the recipient. This spell is usually used when the recipient has a serious, life-threatening illness or disease but wishes to continue living instead of going on. The spell should be cast at night in a large room containing both the giver and the recipient. For every 10 years reduced from the giver, the recipient gains 1 year of life. The incantation is lifenarus transferos and both the giver and the recipient should say it at the same time, then the giver flicks his wand once for every year that will be reduced from his life, and at the same time, the recipient flicks his wand for every year that he gains. If the giver wishes to see how many years of his life are left as long as nothing bad happens to him, such as any accidents or injuries, before he performs the spell, then he has to say lifenarus numbreus and point his wand at his heart, then the number will appear in front of him after several seconds. These spells should be performed with extreme caution because if there is a mistake, the consequences could be severe. Please do not perform unless both giver and recipient are very sure they would like to proceed._

Hermione stood there in silence, going through what she had just read. Professor Dumbledore watched her patiently, waiting for her decision.

After what seemed like hours, Hermione took a deep breath. "I...

A/N: I'm so sorry if this sucked, but please forgive me because like I said, this is my 1st fic ever. I was going to make it a one-shot, but I thought it might be too long and boring, so I'm stopping it here, and there will probably be 1 more chapter, 2 at the most. Please tell me on a scale of 1-10 how good or bad it is, 1 being horrible and 10 being excellent(although I know its not 10, I just hope its not that horrible). Thanks! I will continue this if its not too bad.


	2. Unsaid Feelings

Goodbye For Now

Disclaimer: I forgot to put one in the last chapter so here it is-I own absolutely nothing from Harry Potterit all belongs to JK Rowling, one of the best authors in the world!

A/N: Thanks so much to my reviewers!

karyna-thanks for the rating!:)

moneca stor-thank u very much! I didn't expect it to be that good!:)

Ludicrous-thanks for the review! Your stories are very funny and I would really like to read more!:)

HHRLVR-thank u so much for reviewing! Your questions will be answered in this chapter!:)

dun hav 1-thanks for reviewing, whoever u are!:)

Okay here's the next chapter ppl! Enjoy and plz review when you're done!

After what seemed like hours, Hermione took a deep breath. "I...I can't." She shook her head and stared at the floor, her tears wetting the white carpet.

Dumbledore observed her through his half-moon spectacles. Finally, he spoke. "I understand Miss Granger, but may I ask why?"

Hermione replied through her tears, "I...I just want you to live the rest of your life since the spell doesn't allow me to gain much more than a few years, and---"She broke off, sinking to the floor with her face in her hands.

Fawkes flew to her side, comforting her, and Dumbledore decided to see how many years he had left in his life, if she had said yes. "Lifenarus numbreus," he said quietly, pointing his wand at his heart. Soon, a small popping sound came from his wand and tiny dots flew out to form the number 44. Hermione looked up from her tears and saw the number, and she felt that she had made the right decision.

Dumbledore lowered his wand and the dots vanished with another small pop. "Well, Miss Granger if you're sure, then I suppose it is time to say good-bye, because I assume this is just between you and me." Hermione looked at Dumbledore and saw that he had several tears slowly trickling into his long white beard.

Hermione brushed her tears away and stood up, biting her lip, not wanting to believe that this was truly the last time she would ever be at Hogwarts, her home away from home for 6 whole years. Dumbledore hugged her gently and Hermione was so overcome with emotion that she began crying again. Finally, she pulled away slowly.

"I'm so glad to have met someone like you Miss Granger,"Dumbledore said. "You truly are a one-of-a-kind witch."

"Th-thank you Professor,"Hermione said softly. "And, may I ask you something before I go?"she said, remembering a question that had been pulling at her mind since she found out about the disease.

"Certainly Miss Granger."

"Why is it that I only got this disease if other people have been in contact with Crookshanks also?"

Dumbledore replied, "It is because, for some reason, catonen only affects wizards and witches with nonmagic parents, and only the first one that comes in contact with the cat, which was you."

Hermione couldn't believe it. Out of all the wizards and witches with nonmagic parents, she had to be the one to notice Crookshanks first. She silently cursed herself for being such a softie to unwanted animals.

"Miss Granger?"Dumbledore's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Oh, y-yes, I'm sorry, I'll be going now, and once again, thank you Professor, for everything you have done for me these past 6 years that I've been here,"Hermione said her final farewell, her voice cracking with sadness. "And w-will you tell everyone that I had to go away to the U.S. to study so they won't wonder about my disappearance?"

"Yes, Miss Granger, I will do that,"Professor Dumbledore replied. Hermione nodded and whispered a thank you before turning around and heading out the door.

She took a long route back to the Common Room, walking slowly through the dark halls. At first she was worried that the prefects might catch her, but then she remembered that last year, Professor Dumbledore had created a rule that prefects can take the first night off so that students can enjoy just one free night in the halls, but no one really stayed out, since Filch still insisted on patrolling the halls, and if he found students walking around, he would yell and yell at them, spraying them with spit.

Hermione only saw a few people staying out, but they never really noticed her because they were too busy having midnight makeouts, so all she had to do was creep very quietly and slowly around them, and then she could continue walking down the hall.

She suddenly heard a bang, so she slipped her hand into her pocket to get her wand, just in case. When she pulled it out, she also pulled out a small piece of parchment. _Harry's note!_ She remembered the note he had slipped to her after the feast. She ducked behind a large statue and whispered Lumos so she could read it. She unfolded it and read:

_Hermione,_

_I think we should talk. Please meet me in that unused classroom on the 5th floor at 11pm._

_Harry_

Hermione hurried to the classroom, and when she entered, she found Harry slumped on a desk, asleep. She checked her watch(which she had charmed so that it would work in Hogwarts even though it was a muggle accessory), and it read 12:28am. She slowly tiptoed over to him and took out the gift. She carefully placed it on the desk.

She also decided to write him and Ron a small goodbye note, so she used the other side of Harry's note and quickly wrote:

_Harry and Ron,_

_I'm going away to the U.S. because my parents insist that I should study there instead of here, and I can't do anything about it. I'm sorry that its so sudden. I will miss you two so much! Thank you for being such wonderful friends to me._

_Take care of yourselves,_

_Hermione_

Hermione was about to put the note down, but she decided that she would also tell Harry her feelings for him, since she would never see him again.

_Harry,_

_Only you will be able to see this, because I don't want anyone else to know. The thing is, I really like you as more than a friend, ever since our 2nd year, and I just wanted to let you know before I go. I know you probably just like me as a friend, but I really really really wanted to tell you before I leave. Thank you for being my best friend these past years, for being someone I could talk to. I will never forget you._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

Hermione cast a spell so that only Harry could see the writing, and she placed it down beside the gift. She looked down at his sleeping face, and before she could stop herself, she leaned down and placed a light kiss on his lips. Then, she turned around and left the room quickly before she began crying, otherwise he might hear her and wake up.

Soon, she reached the Fat Lady's portrait and realized that she didn't know the password. The Fat Lady glanced down at her and said, "Oh, are you Hermione Granger?" Hermione nodded.

"Professor Dumbledore has given me orders to let you in even without the password so here you go,"the Fat Lady said, swinging her portrait open.

Hermione walked in and up to the girls dormitory. She got her trunk and minimized it so it would fit in her pocket. Then, she left the dormitory, went down the stairs, and out of the Common Room into the hallway again. She slowly crept down the Grand Staircase and went into the Entrance Hall. Dumbledore had left one of the main doors open for her, so she slipped out and onto the grounds. Once she got into Hogsmeade, she turned around and looked back at the castle one last time before apparating to her apartment.

Harry suddenly awoke from a strange dream that he was having. He dreamt that Hermione was saying something to him, but he couldn't hear her, so he tried walking to her, but then she just vanished and he was left all alone in the room, and that's when he woke up.

He realized that he wasn't in his bed, he wasn't even in his dormitory, but in some classroom. He stood up and stretched, trying to remember why he was there. He looked down at the desk and saw several things placed there. He took the note and read one side of it, the side with his handwriting on it, and after reading it, he remembered that he had asked Hermione to meet him there last night. He turned it over and read Hermione's note, his eyes widening with each word that he read.

"But...that can't be,"Harry said to himself. "Ron was just telling me yesterday that Hermione was so worried that she wouldn't pass the NEWTs in June, so she couldn't be leaving..." He looked at the note again and saw the 2nd part of it. He read it disbelievingly. _She...she couldn't have feelings for me...It's just not possible..._But then he knew that Hermione would never lie to him, so it was true.

Harry raked his hand through his hair, trying to analyze what was going on. Finally, he decided to go talk to Professor Dumbledore because Dumbledore would definitely know what was going on. He took the notes and his cloak of the desk and knocked Hermione's gift to the floor by accident. He heard it thump as it hit the floor, so he turned around and picked it up.

_Why didn't I notice this before? _he wondered as he carefully tore the wrapping off.

Tears began to roll down his cheeks when he saw the gift she had given him. It was a framed picture of him, Ron, and Hermione standing by the lake, arms around each other, smiles spread across their faces. He remembered that Colin Creevey had insisted on taking it for them, but afterwards, they found out that it was the last shot on his camera, so they had let Hermione keep the photo.

Harry turned the frame over and read the back:

_Harry,_

_I know it's a bit late, but this is your birthday present. I didn't have much time to go out shopping, so this was the best thing I could give you. I hope you like it, and I hope that all your birthday wishes come true!_

_Best wishes,_

_Hermione_

Harry suddenly heard a loud meow. _Mrs. Norris!_ Harry gathered everything in one arm and used his other hand to throw his invisibility cloak over him, then he slowly crept to the door and peered out through the glass. Mrs. Norris was standing in the middle of the hall, looking around suspiciously.

"Mrs. Norris?"Filch's raspy voice rang through the empty halls. Harry saw him go to Mrs. Norris and pick her up, asking, "Did you see any brats lurking around?" Mrs. Norris turned her head towards the room that Harry was in. Harry gasped. _How did she know?_ He quickly went over to a shelf and squeezed himself under it. Soon, he heard the door open and Filch coming in, mumbling something that he couldn't understand. Filch walked around the whole classroom, peering behind every curtain. He came close to where Harry was hiding, and Harry began sweating from fear. But soon he moved away and after a while, Harry heard the door open and bang shut again. He slowly got out from under the shelf and hurried to the door.

After checking that the halls were empty, he left the room and headed for Professor Dumbledore's office, clutching the notes and the picture in his hand.

A/N: Whew! I think this story might be longer than I planned. Please review! Thanks again everyone!


	3. The Harsh Truth

Goodbye For Now

Disclaimer: I don't own anything! It all belongs to JK Rowling and Warner Brothers!

A/N: Thanks so much to my reviewers!

karyna-thanks a bunchie! lol you're not being demanding, I always want other authors to update as soon as they can too!

hpfantic-thank u so so much! I read the 3rd chapter and it was really great!

SecondSkin-thanks for reviewing! Your story is really interesting!

AshleyPotter13-thank u very much! Hope you like this chapter! Also, your story rocks!

Rab8831-thanks a lot for the review!

Ok here's the 3rd chapter! r&r plz!

After checking that the halls were empty, Harry left the room and headed for Professor Dumbledore's office, clutching the notes and the picture in his hand.

He crept by the suits of armor and the paintings until he finally reached the statue. _Oh, this is great, I come all the way here and I don't even know the password!_ He stood there, trying to decide if he should just wait for Dumbledore to come out or just go back to the Common Room, when suddenly the statue slowly opened. Harry quickly turned around and saw Dumbledore sleepily emerging from the door. He was so deep in thought that he walked right past Harry, so Harry ran up to him and said, "Professor, may I speak to you for a moment?"

Dumbledore snapped out of his thoughts and turned at the sound of Harry's voice. "Oh yes, of course Mr. Potter. Do you want to talk later in my office or right now because I'm heading to Hagrid's and that will give you plenty of time to talk."

"Oh, we can talk right now,"Harry replied hastily as they began walking down the hallway. "It's about Hermione."

Dumbledore looked slightly surprised. "Well, I can't say that I haven't been expecting this, especially if you haven't seen her since the feast last night."

"Did something happen to her?"Harry asked worriedly. "Because she wrote me a note saying she had to go study in the U.S., but Ron was just telling me last night that she was so worried that she wouldn't pass the NEWTs next June, so why would she say that if she knew that she had to go?"

"Well, I suppose she didn't want you two to question her about going there, so she had to tell a little white lie to keep it secret,"Dumbledore lied reluctantly.

Harry was confused. _Why wouldn't Hermione trust us with something like that? There must be more to it than just that._ "Professor, did she come and tell you about it last night?" Dumbledore nodded slowly.

"Did she mention anything else besides that?"Harry asked.

"No, she didn't go into much details,"Dumbledore really hated lying to Harry, since he could tell how much he cared about her, but he had to do it for Hermione.

"Oh,"Harry was crestfallen.

They had come to the main doors. "Thank you Professor, I'll go and have some breakfast now,"Harry said before turning around and heading into the Great Hall.

_I'm so sorry Harry_, Dumbledore thought as he watched Harry's retreating figure. Then, he opened one door and stepped out to the grounds.

Harry walked over to the Gryffindor table and joined the other students who had gotten up early to eat.

He was biting down on a piece of toast when Ron slumped sleepily to the table. "Whurwuryooarry?" he mumbled.

"What?"Harry asked.

Ron rubbed his face to wake himself up more before repeating his sentence. "Where were you Harry?"he asked, helping himself to a blueberry muffin.

"Oh, I uh.....I fancied a walk on the grounds,"Harry said quickly.

Ron looked at Harry, eyebrows raised. "Fred and George stayed up till midnight coming up with ideas for their shop and they said you never came in yesterday night."

Harry tried to think of a good excuse, but unfortunately couldn't, so he remained silent.

Ron narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "I also overheard Lavender and Parvati saying that they hadn't seen Hermione since the feast. Are you two..." he couldn't bring himself to say the word.

Harry's eyes widened. "Of course we're not dating Ron. She...she left last night."

It was Ron's turn to be shocked. "Wh-what? Why? Why would she leave?"

Harry took the note out of his pocket and held it out to Ron. Ron snatched it and skimmed the note quickly, his hands shaking.

"She.....she went to the U.S.? No way, that's impossible, there's definitely more to this,"Ron said slowly, handing the note back to Harry.

"That's what I think also,"Harry said, pocketing the note again and picking up his bookbag. "All right, I'm done eating, I'll see you later."

Ron, who had stuffed his mouth with a cupcake, merely nodded and continued eating. Harry smiled slightly, then left the Great Hall.

Once he closed the door, he began thinking of what to do about Hermione. Suddenly, he heard Hermione's name being mentioned nearby. He reached into his bag and pulled out his cloak. Wrapping it over himself, he hid behind a suit of armor and listened.

"But Albus, where is Ms. Granger?"Professor McGonagall said as she walked along the hall with Professor Dumbledore.

"Minerva, she has left,"Dumbledore said solemnly.

"What? Why would she leave?"McGonagall asked, her voice filled with worry.

"It is not easy for me to tell you, but she.....she has catonen,"Dumbledore said quietly. "She has to stay in St. Mungo's."

Professor McGonagall gasped. "Oh my, please tell me you're lying Albus." Dumbledore shook his head.

"Why did this have to happen to her?"Professor McGonagall said sadly.

Dumbledore sighed. "There's nothing we can do. But Minerva, she has requested that no one know about this, so please don't pass this on to anyone else." Professor McGonagall nodded silently.

"Well, I have to go see Sybill about her Divination classes,"Dumbledore said, making his way up the Grand Staircase. Professor McGonagall went into the Great Hall.

As soon as he heard the door of the Great Hall close, Harry came out from behind the suit of armor and took off his cloak, stuffing it back into his bookbag. _Ok, this is getting weird, what in the world is catonen and why would Hermione go to St. Mungo's?_Harry wondered. _Oh well, there's only one person who knows all the answers. _He ran up the Grand Staircase towards the headmaster's office for the 2nd time that morning.

He sat down in front of the large statue and waited for Dumbledore. He checked his watch. _Good, I've still got half an hour before class begins._ He took the picture out of his bookbag and held it against his chest, remembering all the good times the 3 of them had throughout the last 6 years. Soon, he heard footsteps approaching, so he carefully put the picture back into his bag and stood up.

"What are you doing here again, Harry?"Dumbldore asked pleasantly.

"I.....I was wondering what catonen is..."Harry trailed off.

Dumbledore took a long, deep breath. "You were there after breakfast, weren't you?"

"Er...yes, sir, but I didn't mean to...I mean I was just coming out and I heard Hermione's name being mentioned, so I had to listen,"Harry said guiltily.

"Well, I cannot keep it from you much longer. Please come into my office and I will explain everything,"Dumbledore said solemnly.

"All right,"Harry was becoming a little impatient.

Dumbledore said the password and they entered. Harry settled into an armchair and Dumbledore sat behind his desk.

"You won't like what I have to say, but please listen to everything before you decide on anything,"Dumbledore began. Harry nodded quickly.

"Well, catonen is an extremely rare disease found only in wizards and witches with nonmagic parents. And Hermione got it from her pet cat, so she has been infected with catonen."

"But.....she'll live won't she?"Harry thought he might collapse from the suspense.

"That is the thing. She.......she won't,"Dumbledore said quietly. "She has about 6 months left."

Harry shot up from his chair, gripping the sides of the chair so hard that it began to tear. "No, that can't be! No, that's impossible. Please sir, can't you do anything?"

"I'm sorry Harry, but she chose not to,"Dumbledore replied sadly.

Harry began walking towards the door. "Thank you sir, I need to go now."And in a flash, he was gone.

Hermione opened her eyes. _Where am I?_ She thought to herself. Then, she remembered. She remembered everything that had happened the night before. She bit her lip and slowly got up from the bed, heading for the bathroom.

She changed quickly, then brushed her long brown hair slowly, looking at herself in the mirror. She saw a normal girl staring back at her. A girl as normal as every other girl, except for one major difference: the others were all living happily, and she was the only unhappy one.

Hermione sighed and stood up. She was about to leave her room, when suddenly...........

Harry raced back to the Common Room and up the stairs to his dormitory. He grabbed his Firebolt and flung open the window. Slowly, he got on and flew out, with only one destination in mind: St. Mungo's.

He flew slowly at first, but then gained speed until he was whooshing through the clouds. Soon, he carefully put his Invisibility Cloak over him, then began descending.

Harry landed in a small alley, took his cloak off, then performed a spell so that both his broom and cloak were minimized to fit in his pocket.

He walked along the sidewalk until he saw the dummy behind the glass.

"I'm here to see Hermione Granger,"he said hurriedly. The dummy nodded and pointed a finger at the glass, so Harry stepped through and into St. Mungo's waiting room. He ran up to the woman behind the desk.

"Can you please tell me what room Hermione Granger is in?"Harry asked.

"Oh I'm sorry sir, but she has requested that no one know except for the Healers,"the clerk replied.

"Please, I'm begging you. I really need to find her,"Harry said desperately.

The clerk raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry sir. Next please."

Harry stepped away from the desk, then began running through the halls, checking the names of the patients on each and every door. When he finished searching the 4th and final floor, he leaned against the wall, out of breath. Out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed a very small staircase going up. He squeezed up the stairs, keeping his head low. He came out to another hall, and felt a gush of hope swell up inside him.

Harry began checking the names on the doors, losing hope with each step. He soon reached the last door at the end of the hall. He closed his eyes briefly, praying and hoping that it said Hermione.

He opened his eyes slowly and looked up at the name. Hermione Granger!

Hermione was about to open the door, when it burst open in front of her. She couldn't believe her eyes.

"Harry?"

A/N: Ok there's my 3rd chapter! Sorry if it was a long wait! I'll try my very best to get the next one up within the next month!


	4. Beautiful

Goodbye For Now

Disclaimer: I own nothing at all...

A/N: Thanks again to my reviewers!

hpfantic- thanks! Hope you like this chapter!

granger-gurl-rox- thanks! You'll just have to wait and see what happens!

ashleypotter13- thanks! Lol sorry for the cliffie!

karyna- u lil freak! I didn't say u could use my acount! but anyway thanks! cya!

Ok, the 4th chapter is here! r&r plz! also, I'm sorry if the fluffy part sucks, I don't really know how to write fluffy stuff! I'll work on it though!

"Harry?"

Harry didn't say anything. Instead, he reached out and pulled Hermione close to him, wrapping her in a tight hug.

Hermione leaned against him, closing her eyes and letting her tears fall.

Harry felt small wet drops on the front of his shirt, so he pulled away slowly and used his thumb to gently brush away the tears from her face.

"Why couldn't you tell us?"he asked softly.

Hermione looked up into his emerald eyes and they kept their eyes on each other for a long time before she answered, "I...I was afraid of what you two would think if you found out."

"Oh Hermione, we've been your best friends for 6 years, you don't really think that we would stop being your friend just because you have....."he trailed off.

There was silence for a while.

Hermione then sighed softly, taking a few steps back and sitting down on the corner of her bed. Harry followed, sitting down next to her.

"Something seems to be on your mind. Wanna tell me?"Harry asked.

"Well, it's just that......the note I wrote to you, the 2nd part of it, I was just wondering if you.......return those feelings,"Hermione said quietly. "Oh, what am I thinking? Of course not, I mean, you're my best friend, and I'm not even pretty or anything, you obviously wouldn't, I'm just being silly, never mind." She stared down at her hands, blushing slightly.

Harry reached over and took her hand in his. Hermione looked up.

"You know, you're right. You're not pretty at all,"he said. Hermione gave him an odd look. _He's never this straightforward_, she thought confusedly.

"Nope, you're not pretty." He paused. "You're beautiful actually, both inside and out." Hermione felt her cheeks heat up.

"Are you just saying that to make me feel better?"she asked.

Harry sighed. "When it comes to books, you're so clever. But when it comes to real life, you're so naive." He leaned close to her. "Hermione Granger, I think you're the most beautiful person I've ever met."

He straightened up. "Hope that helps,"he said, smiling. Hermione was speechless. She felt like someone had glued her lips together so that she couldn't speak.

But, she didn't need to, because Harry leaned close to her again, and this time, he kissed her gently on her lips. She was startled at first, but then she slowly began kissing him back.

A long while later, they broke apart, out of breath. Suddenly, Hermione began to cry again.

"What's wrong?"Harry asked immediately.

"I-it's just that......I don't k-know how I will b-be able to go on......to l-leave you.......a-and everyone else....."she sobbed. Harry wrapped his arms around her, cradling her head against his chest. Slowly, he began feeling tears form at the corner of his eyes, but he didn't bother wiping them, he just let them fall freely.

"Hermione, you'll be all right,"he said softly. "We still have 6 months together, let's just live each day as it comes."

"Thank you so much Harry. I don't know what I would do without you,"Hermione said quietly.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. "Miss Granger, it's Healer Toffwich, may I come in?"

"Yes, hold on a second,"Hermione called back. She tapped her wand on Harry's head, performing the same spell that Moody had cast on him in their 5th year so that he would blend in with their surroundings.

He ducked behind a curtain, just to be safe. Hermione then walked to the door and opened it.

"Good morning Miss Granger. I didn't see you at breakfast so I was just wondering where you were,"Healer Toffwich said pleasantly. "Would you like me to bring you some breakfast?"

"Oh, no thank you Healer Toffwich. I'm not really hungry,"Hermione replied, forcing a smile.

"All right then, I'll be in the Con Savunue ward if you need me." Hermione nodded, then closed the door slowly.

Harry stepped out from behind the curtain.

"Harry, don't you have classes?"Hermione asked curiously.

"Yes, but I'm not going,"Harry replied simply.

Hermione's eyes widened. "Harry, you have to go! You have NEWTs next year!"

"Hermione, don't worry. I'd really rather be here-"Harry began, but Hermione interrupted him.

"No, you're leaving right now. Your studies are much more important than...being here,"she was being so serious that Harry had to laugh.

"What's so funny?"Hermione asked suspiciously.

"Nothing, it's just that you're so cute when you're angry,"Harry said, smiling. Hermione rolled her eyes, but smiled back at him.

"Well, if you really want me to go, I'll go,"he said, taking his broom and cloak out of his pocket.

Hermione nodded. "I'll be fine. You go on."

Harry walked over to the window and pulled out his wand. He turned his broom and cloak back to their original size, before mounting his broom.

"Wait Harry,"Hermione said. She walked over to him. "Were you going to leave without kissing me goodbye?"

Harry smiled, then leaned down and kissed her again. It lasted for a few minutes before Hermione pulled back slowly.

"Um, can I tell Ron about, you know?"Harry asked as he stepped up to the window.

Hermione hesitated for a moment, but then said, "Yes, he should know about everything. It wouldn't be right to keep it from him."

"All right, I just have to hope that he won't injure me or anything once I tell him,"Harry said jokingly, and Hermione smiled slightly.

Then, Harry kicked off into the air and pulled his cloak over him. He saw Hermione waving goodbye, but he didn't wave back, since she couldn't see him anyway._ I love you, Hermione. I wish I could tell you, but I'm afraid of how you'll react_, he thought sadly as he flew back to Hogwarts.

Hermione dropped her hand down to her side._ Oh Harry, how can I tell you how much I love you? I mean, we're only 17, but I'm positive that I truly love you. I'm just afraid of how you'll react if I tell you_. She shook her head and turned away from the window.

Harry continued visiting her on the weekends, but they never talked about the thing that they were longing to talk about. Both were too afraid of the other's reaction if they found out.

A/N: Ok, I'm sorry if this was kinda short because it was just mostly talking, but I promise that you'll like the next chapter! I think there will only be about 2-4 more chapters left before the end. Please review!


	5. Love and Promise

Goodbye For Now

Disclaimer: I oWN NoTHiNG!

A/N: Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed!!! U ppl rock!

Harrys-ActingAngel: ok that's fine as long as you don't plan on marrying it! lol thanks for reviewing!:)I LUV your story but you haven't updated for so long already!

Granger-gurl-rox: thanks a lot for the review!:)I LUV your story!

hpfantic: omg thank u so much for the review!:)I LUV your story!

AshleyPotter13: thanks so much for the review! :)And yes, this story will be ending pretty soon...sorry!:)I LUV your story!

MirandaG.Potter: thanks for reviewing!:)I LUV your story!

Bobley: thanks:), but if u didn't like that last chapter, I don't think you'll like this one much either!

JediMasterMaraJade: yep I get what you mean, it would be kool, but I've already got everything planned out all the way to the end! thanks anyway for reviewing!:)

karyna: thanks a bunch gurl!:)

A/N: By the way, there's not much action here, it's mostly a conversation between Harry and Hermione and a lil bit of fluff. Hope you guys like it!

_5 months later........_

Hermione and Harry sat on the rooftop of St. Mungo's and watched the sun go down against the dim orange sky.

"Harry?"Hermione whispered.

"Hm?"

Hermione took a deep breath. "I have only 1 month left,"she began, exhaling slowly. "So...I want you to promise me something."

Harry jerked up. "What is it Hermione?"

"Promise me that you'll go on with your life when I leave, that you won't sit around and let your life go to waste. Promise me that you'll meet someone that you truly love and that you'll get married and live happily."

Harry gazed into her cinnamon brown eyes.

"Promise me Harry, please,"Hermione pleaded.

"I can't Hermione,"Harry admitted.

"Why Harry? It's not like you love me or anything..."Hermione trailed off.

Harry didn't answer. He just turned away. Finally, he said, "Yes, I do. That's why I can't keep your promise. I can't imagine being with anyone but you. I'm sorry." He stood up and left abruptly.

Harry's confession rang in Hermione's ears. _Does he love me or not? Because if he did, he definitely wouldn't walk out on me._ Her confusion soon turned into bitter tears as she lay her head against the cool cement. _Why is this happening?_ She thought sadly.

Slowly, she stood up and walked to the edge of the rooftop. _I might as well go now, there's no need to wait a whole month,_ she decided. Carefully, she put one foot on the ledge. A small verse of a song came to her mind:

_Everytime I try to fly, I fall._

_Without my wings, I feel so small._

_I guess I need you baby._

_And everytime I see you in my dreams,_

_I see your face, it's haunting me._

_I guess I need you baby._

Tears flowed down her face as she realized how similar her feelings were to that song.

Harry pulled the door shut behind him. He began walking along the hallway._ Whoa, hold on a sec Potter. You just left your one true love out there without much of an explanation. What the hell is wrong with you???_ His conscience was tugging at him to go back, but he couldn't, not after he just confessed his love to her and walked out on her.

_POTTER!_ His conscience screamed. _GET YOUR ASS BACK OUT THERE RIGHT NOW!!!_

Finally, Harry surrendered and turned around, heading back the way he came.

He opened the door slowly. The sight he saw horrified him.

"Hermione NO!"he shouted.

Hermione whirled around. "Harry,"she whispered tearfully.

Harry raced to her and wrapped his arms around her, picking her up and off the ledge. He set her back down on the cement.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry,"Harry cried, burying his face into her hair. "I don't care if you don't love me like I love you, but I promise that I'll always be here for you."

"But I do love you Harry,"Hermione said through her tears.

"I know you do but it's not in the same way that I love you,"Harry said.

"Yes it is Harry,"Hermione said firmly. "I'm sorry I never told you sooner, but I love you more than anything in the world. As long as you're by my side, I won't be afraid to go on."

She pulled back and smiled at him. "But you still have to go on with life, ok Harry?"

Harry smiled back at her and replied, "All right Hermione. I will. It won't be easy to live without you, but I'll try my best."

"Thank you Harry,"Hermione said softly.

Harry brushed some stray hairs out of her face before pulling her back into a hug. Soon, that hug became a snogging session, so after a while, they broke apart for air.

"So when did you start becoming attracted to me?"Harry asked slyly.

Hermione, blushing a crimson red, mumbled, "Since 2nd year."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "You've liked me for 5 years?"

"Correction Harry,"Hermione interrupted. "I liked you for 3 years until our 5th year when I began realizing that I loved you."

Harry smiled sheepishly.

"So when did you start liking me?"Hermione asked curiously.

"Well since 3rd year, when we were talking in the trees while waiting to rescue Sirius,"Harry replied. "While you were talking, I had this sudden urge to grab you and snog you senseless." He smirked. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"But,"he added, "I think I was already attracted to you that day we met on the train. Your bossiness was very...how should I put this...captivating."

Hermione smiled. "So you've been attracted to me, liked me, and loved me for a total of 7 years already?"

It was Harry's turn to blush. "Yeah,"he mumbled, turning scarlet. Hermione lay her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, inhaling his familiar scent that she'd known for 7 years.

As it began to get dark, Harry said, "I better go now. I have a Charms quiz tomorrow."

Hermione nodded and sat up, watching him as he stood up and wrapped his cloak over himself.

"Harry, how is Ron taking all this?"Hermione asked suddenly.

"Well...he's not really talking to me, so I guess he's still angry." Harry shrugged.

"Can you try talking to him?"Hermione asked.

"I have tried already, but he just won't talk to me,"he paused. "But I'll try again though, for your sake."

"Thanks Harry. That means a lot to me,"Hermione said sincerely. Harry smiled at her.

"Bye Hermione." He lifted up part of his cloak and blew her a kiss, before opening the door and leaving.

Hermione watched him go, then began zipping up her jacket because she knew how cold it would be inside of St. Mungo's, since the hospital supervisor had recently become obsessed with muggle things, so he had ordered A/Cs and would always turn them all the way up to HIGH, so the whole hospital would be freezing cold.

Hermione went back to her room and immediately fell asleep because she was so tired. What she didn't know was that her illness was slowly draining her energy.....

A/N: Okay, there's chapter 5! Plz review ppl!

In the next chapter:

-Harry will confront Ron and it's _NOT_ going to be nice at all...

-Ron makes a _BIG_ decision that will affect everyone around him...

I'll try to get my next chapter up within the next few weeks or a month at the most! Until then, peace out ppl! :)


	6. Aggravation

Goodbye For Now

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing! It's all JK Rowling's stuff!

A/N: Thanks a bunchie to my reviewers!

Miranda G. Potter-thanks! Hope you can update your story soon!

Ashley Potter13-thanks! Yeah I know, _Everytime_ is so sweet!

hpfantic-thanks! I'm sorry u lost someone close to u, it must be really really hard...

creepy susie-thanks! small hint: things are not always what they seem.....that's all I'm saying about this story!

Vera-Sabe-thanks so so much! That is definitely one of the best reviews I've ever gotten!

magicalme-thanks for reviewing! Sorry, but you'll just have to wait & see!

Granger-gurl-rox-thanks! Hope you like this chapter!

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Monkeyfeet180-thanks for reviewing!

confused 1-thanks for reviewing! Here's your update!

All right here's chapter 6! Remember to r&r plz!

_How come_

_We don't even talk no more_

_And you don't even call no more_

_We don't barely keep in touch at all_

_And I don't even feel the same love when we hug no more_

_And I heard it thru the grapevine_

_We even beefin now_

_After all the years we been down_

_Ain't no way no how_

_This bull can't be true_

_We a family ain't a damn thing changed_

_Unless it's you_

_D12/Eminem-How Come_

Harry silently flew back into the Common Room through the window. He removed his cloak and collapsed onto the armchair, worn out from the flight. Suddenly, he heard footsteps behind him so he turned around.

Ron was trying to creep back up into the dormitory when Harry stopped him, grabbing his arm. Ron turned around to face him, his face looking eerily hollow from the dying fire in the fireplace.

"Ron, we need to talk,"Harry said.

"There's nothing to talk about,"Ron replied, trying to break free from Harry's grip.

"Oh yes there is,"Harry said firmly, tightening his hold on Ron's arm. "We need to talk about Hermione."

Ron sighed defeatedly. "Fine,"he muttered, wrenching his arm free and sitting down on the couch with his arms folded in front of him.

Harry sat down on the couch opposite him and began to talk. "Listen Ron, I know it hasn't been easy for you, but think about how Hermione feels, watching her 2 best friends not talking. She convinced me to talk to you, so here I am. Listen Ron, all I want is for things to be all right again."

"All right? You want things to be all right?"Ron hissed angrily. "Well for your information, things will never be all right again Harry. You always have to get everything, and you're always the first to know things, all because of that stupid scar on your forehead. I don't know what world you were living in before, but this is reality, and in reality, THINGS WILL NEVER BE ALL RIGHT AGAIN!!!"

Harry almost screamed right back at him, but then he remembered Hermione and told himself_ You're doing this for Hermione_. _Calm down._ So he remained silent and watched Ron as he turned redder and redder.

"Well say something! You're the one who wanted to talk to me!"Ron said furiously.

"I.....I don't know what to say Ron,"Harry said quietly. "All I want is my best friend back, but I suppose that won't be happening anytime soon." He stood up and began walking towards the stairs to the dormitory.

"Oh no you don't,"Ron stood up and gripped Harry's arm, throwing him down to the floor. Harry stood up quickly, unable to believe that Ron had just done that, but before he knew what was happening, Ron's fist connected with his nose and he staggered backwards again. A jolt of pain ran through him as it began to bleed horribly.

Ron stepped back. He couldn't believe that he had just punched Harry. Even in their worst arguments, there had never been any physical fights.

Harry struggled back up again. "I'm not going to try to persuade you anymore. If you want to be friends again, I'll be right here, but if not, then there's nothing I can do about it." He turned around and walked up the stairs, leaving a very shocked Ron standing there.

The next morning, Harry woke up suddenly, his face stinging with pain from the night before. He sat up and glanced over at Ron's bed to see if he was awake, but the bed was already empty so Harry assumed that he had gone down to breakfast.

Ron, meanwhile, was sitting in the library, poring over books about catonen. He had gotten an idea last night about how to help Hermione, but he had to be sure that he was right before going through with it. He closed another book and put it aside, then pulled the next one of the big pile of books. He opened it to the Table of Contents, his eyes skimming over each title of a section in the book, his finger going down the column of titles. Finally, his finger stopped at a title called "The Life Exchanging Potion". He flipped to the page that it was on and muttered, "Yes!" under his breath. He began reading:

_The Life Exchanging Potion is another form of The Life Exchanging Spell, but the potion does not require the reciever to be present. This potion allows the giver to transfer years of his life to the recipient but in the form of a potion for the reciever to drink. As with the Life Exchanging Spell, for every 10 years reduced from the giver, the reciever gains 1 year of life. Please have a potion vial ready before performing the incantation, which is lifenarus transferos. Keep the wand pointed at the vial while the incantation is recited, and flick the wand once for every year reduced. If the giver wishes to see how many years of his life are left, excluding any accidents or injuries, the incantation is lifenarus numbreus, and the wand must be pointed towards heart. The number will appear after a few seconds. Caution: If the spells go wrong, the consequences could be severe._

Ron slowly shut the book and sighed, biting his lip. _Am I really going to do this?_ he asked himself.

_Yes you are Ronald Weasley. Let Harry and Hermione live together happily. You will not stand in the way of true love_, his conscience answered him firmly.

Ron sat there, thinking for a long time. Finally, he decided. _Yes, I'm going to do this. As long as Hermione's happy, I'll be happy._

He took out his wand and pointed it at his heart. "Lifenarus numbreus,"he muttered quietly, and soon a small pop could be heard as tiny dots flew out to form the number 550. _Whoa, I can live to be pretty old! _he thought amusingly as he watched the dots slowly vanish with another small pop.

Ron did some quick calculating in his head and realized that if he gave up all 550 years, Hermione could live up to 72 years old. _But then if I gave up everything I would just fall to the floor and die instantly wouldn't I?_

Ron decided to save half a year for himself so he could at least say goodbye to his family. But he knew that he could never tell Hermione about this because she would never let him go through with it if she knew.

When the bell rang for class to begin, he ripped the page out from the book, folded it, and tucked it into his pocket for later. Then he quickly returned the books and slipped out of the library and towards the North Tower for Divination.

Harry sat down on one of the armchairs in the hazy Divination room, lost in his thoughts. Suddenly he sensed someone sitting down next to him so he shook his head to clear his mind, turned to his left, and his eyes widened.

"I'm sorry,"Ron mumbled as he sat down next to Harry, not meeting his eyes.

"Well, er.....does that mean you want to be friends again?"he asked uncertainly.

"Yeah I'll give it a shot,"Ron replied as he glanced sideways at Harry. Harry's lips slowly upturned into a smile and Ron returned it. For a moment, he considered telling Harry about his plan, but then decided against it, since he knew Harry well enough to know that he would never let him do it if he knew.

Harry noticed Ron's smile wavering ever so slightly. "Is something wrong?"he asked.

"No of course not! Why would something be wrong?"Ron chuckled nervously. Harry raised his eyebrows suspiciously but let the subject drop as Professor Trelawney came out of the shadows and began droning on about the meaning and significance of various shadows cast by different people.

Finally after what seemed like hours later, the bell rang and Harry and Ron raced to get out of the heavily perfumed room.

They headed outside for Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid, then to the 2nd floor for Charms, then lunch; the day pretty much breezed by and soon it was time for dinner already.

"Hey Potter, I never got to ask you what happened to your little mudblood girlfriend," Draco Malfoy's obnoxious voice called out to Harry as he and Ron sat down at the Gryffindor table. Ron immediately stood up again, clenching his fists, but Harry held him down and muttered, "Just ignore him Ron." Ron sat back down again but shot a death glare at Malfoy and his cronies, who simply laughed and walked away.

"Harry, we've got to fight him back, otherwise he'll never stop!"Ron exclaimed, still glaring at Malfoy's retreating figure.

"It's not going to help Ron. All he'll do is get us into more trouble by telling Professor Snape if we fight him,"Harry said quietly.

They finished their meal in silence, not because they were mad at each other, but because their minds were drifting off. Harry, who didn't know anything about the Life Exchanging Spell or Potion, was thinking of asking Professor Dumbledore if he could just spend the rest of the month with Hermione, while Ron was thinking about when and where to do the spell and create the potion.

When dinner ended, Harry saw Ron trying to sneak off somewhere by blending in with the crowd, and at first he thought of going after him, but then decided against it. _He deserves some time alone_, Harry thought to himself as he walked up the Grand Staircase with some other students.

Suddenly, he felt a hand attach itself to his arm, so he turned around. Ginny was standing there smiling at him.

"Oh, hi Gin, what's up?"Harry asked surprisedly; Ginny was usually with her boyfriend and never really had time for anyone else anymore.

"Nothing, I was just wondering if you wanted to go for a walk with me,"she replied.

"Wouldn't you rather be with Jay?"Harry asked.

"That bastard broke up with me today,"Ginny said, a hint of anger in her voice as she tightened her grip on Harry's arm. "So do you wanna go?"

"Er.....I have to finish up some work for Charms,"Harry said, shaking his arm slightly as a hint for her to release his arm, but either she didn't notice, or she just didn't care, because she didn't let go.

"Aw come on Harry please?"Ginny batted her eyelashes at him.

_This_ _girl is not giving up is she? _Harry thought to himself. "Fine, but only for a little while."

"All right." She dragged him rather aggressively back down the stairs and out the main doors. Harry had a bad feeling about this, but he pushed it into the back of his mind._ Come on, she's your best friend's little sister, how bad could she get?_

She still didn't let go of his arm outside, but instead moved closer to him and lay her head on his shoulder.

"Er.....Ginny?"Harry asked uncertainly, he wasn't too comfortable with her actions.

"Hm?"Ginny asked.

"Could you please-----"

"Could I please what?"she asked innocently.

Harry began to get irritated; Ginny usually didn't act this way. "Could you please get your head off my shoulder?"

"Aw Harry what's the matter?"Ginny said.

Harry could feel his temper rising quickly, just like in his 5th year when he first arrived at Grimmauld Place, only this time there was no Hermione to calm him down.

"I'm going to ask one last time, _could you please get your head off my shoulder_?"he said, gritting his teeth.

"Ugh, Harry, this is about Hermione isn't it? You know, if she really cared about you, she wouldn't have left, but she did, and I think you deserve someone better,"Ginny said.

"And you think you're the better person?"Harry asked. "Well, FYI, you're not, and you never will be, so get over it." He shook her off his arm and turned back around, heading back to the castle.

Ginny stood there, fuming. "I'm going to get you Harry Potter, no matter what!"she yelled furiously.

Harry rolled his eyes and continued walking. _Like brother like sister_, he thought, snickering under his breath. _But this girl's ten times more cunning than Ron_.

A/N: Okay, so there's chapter 6! I'm so sorry if it was a long wait, but I had to finish like 3 projects within this month, so once again, I'm really sorry! The next chapter will be up in 2 weeks-a month, depending on whether I have time or not, but I totally promise that I won't abandon this!

REVIEW PLZ IF U HAVEN'T YET!!! :)


	7. Untold Secrets

Goodbye For Now

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nuthin!

A/N: Thanks so much peepz!

hpfantic, confused 1, magicalme- Thanks for reviewing! I know its wrong to make Ron do the spell but still......well actually, I won't spoil the ending, you guys will just have to wait and see!

Midnight Silver Dragon- Thanks 4 reviewing!

Aradia-Rose88- Thanks 4 reviewing! Hope u like this chapter!

Miranda G. Potter- Lolz thanks for reviewing!

reebadee2002- Heh thanks for that! Glad u like it!

lauren booth- Thanks for reviewing! Sorry if that Ginny part offended u, I edited this chapter a bit so Ginny doesn't seem so jealous anymore, hope you like it!

evanescence is awesome!- Lolz luv ur username! thanx for reviewing!

karyna- hehe thx gurl! hugs

So here's chappie 7! Enjoy ppl!

Harry walked back into the castle and came face to face with Ginny's ex-boyfriend, who was trying to stuff a wand into his robes. Harry raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"What were you doing here?"Harry asked.

"I....er.....I was just waiting for Ginny to come in,"Jay stuttered.

"With your wand out?"

"Just doing a few charms so I wouldn't get bored while I waited,"he replied carelessly.

Harry narrowed his eyes at Jay, then turned around and walked away.

Soon, Jay saw Ginny walking up the steps, swaying slightly. Suddenly, she collapsed, and Jay rushed over to help her while Harry stood there, not sure if she would want his help also.

Jay knelt down and wrapped his arms around her, but she pushed him away fiercely.

"Why the hell did you do that?"Ginny screamed.

"Do what? I didn't do anything,"Jay said.

"You put me under the Imperius Curse didn't you?"she hissed.

"What? That's ridiculous. Come on Ginny, you're tired and you don't know what you're talking about,"Jay replied hurriedly, holding her firmly so that she couldn't move at all.

A hand gripped his shoulder. "Get your hands off Ginny,"Harry's voice was cold and angry.

"I'm sorry Harry, I didn't mean anything, he put me under the Imperius Curse!"Ginny said, glancing up at Harry.

"I believe you Gin,"Harry said quietly. "Now, get your hands off Ginny,"he repeated to Jay.

"Make me,"Jay said, digging his nails into Ginny's skin as he gripped her forcefully.

"Jay, please, get off,"Ginny pleaded. "Why are you doing this?"

"Why? Because I hate the fact that all you ever talk about is Harry, so I tried to get you two into a fight so you would hate each other,"Jay said proudly.

"What is going on here?" A deep voice asked. The 3 of them turned around to see Dumbledore standing by the doors.

"Nothing sir,"Jay said quickly, withdrawing his arms from Ginny.

"It doesn't seem like nothing, Mr. Carter,"Dumbledore said. "One of you please give me the truth."

"They were joking around, and by accident Jay pushed Ginny and she fell, so I came over to help them,"Harry replied. Jay's eyes widened as he heard Harry's lie.

Dumbledore observed Harry for a moment, a hint of suspicion in his eyes, but he just said, "Very well then, be more careful in the future." He turned around and walked back inside.

"Wh-why did you do that?"Jay asked, staring at Harry.

"The Imperius Curse is illegal, and if you were caught, you would have to spend time in Azkaban. I don't think you deserve that yet,"Harry explained. He beckoned to Ginny. "Come on Gin, let's go."

Ginny hurried to him and they turned around, heading towards the doors.

"Harry-"Jay's voice faltered for a moment. "Thank you."

Harry turned around. "Your welcome,"he said, a small smile forming on his lips. Then he turned back around and headed inside with Ginny.

"Thanks Harry,"Ginny said when they were inside. "And in case you're wondering, I don't really have a crush on you anymore, Jay was just jealous because we're friends."

"Oh, okay,"Harry said, smiling down at her.

"So I'll see you around then,"Ginny said before heading towards the East Wing to meet her Hufflepuff friend Marissa.

Harry climbed the Great Staircase to the 7th floor and went inside the Common Room. It was almost empty except for Fred and George trying out some new inventions, so he decided to do his homework in his dormitory, so the twins wouldn't use him as their invention tester.

When he went into his dormitory, he saw Neville, Dean, and Seamus, but not Ron.

"Have you guys seen Ron anywhere?"Harry asked them.

"Nope mate, we thought he was always with you,"Seamus replied, shrugging.

"So he hasn't come up to the Common Room yet?"Harry asked.

"No, we haven't seen him since dinner,"Dean said.

"Okay, thanks anyway,"Harry said, putting down his bag and taking out his history books to start on his History of Magic homework.

Ron was sitting in Professor Dumbledore's office, waiting for the old man to return. Ron was about to tell Dumbledore about his plan when suddenly he stood up and said "Excuse me for a moment," before leaving the office.

_What's taking him so long?_ Ron wondered as he sat there. Then, the door opened and Dumbledore came back in.

"I was just having a little talk with your friend and 2 others, it was nothing serious,"Dumbledore said, smiling at Ron's confused expression.

"Oh, I see,"Ron replied slowly.

"So what were you about to tell me Mr. Weasley?"Dumbledore asked, sitting down across from Ron.

"Oh, er.....I was going to tell you about.....well, a plan that I have to help Hermione,"Ron said awkwardly.

"So you already know about her condition,"Dumbledore said thoughtfully. "Please continue."

"Well sir, I want to give up all except six months of my life using the Life Exchanging Potion, and I was just wondering if you could, well, help me,"Ron said.

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows slightly and remained silent for a moment. Then he spoke, "All right, Mr. Weasley, if that is truly what you want to do, I will help you. But I suppose that neither Mr. Potter nor Ms. Granger should know about this, am I right?"

"Yes Professor, I know they wouldn't let me do it if they knew,"Ron replied.

"You are a brave and loyal person Mr. Weasley, and Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger are very lucky to have you as their best friend,"Dumbledore said, watching Ron over the top of his half-moon glasses.

Ron blushed the color of his hair. "Thank you sir. So...when should I....perform the spell?"

"Whenever you please, any time or day is fine with me,"Dumbledore said.

"So, could I do it, well, tomorrow night maybe?"Ron asked.

"If you wish,"Dumbledore said simply.

"All right, so.....I'll come here tomorrow night at about this time,"Ron said, standing up and heading for the door.

"Very well. Good night Mr. Weasley,"Dumbledore said.

"Good night sir,"Ron said before leaving and heading to the Common Room.

Harry rubbed his eyes forcefully in order to stay awake and wait for Ron. He had a strange feeling that Ron wasn't telling him something, and he wanted to know what it was.

The dormitory door opened and Ron came in. He immediately fell back onto his bed.

"Hey, where have you been?"Harry asked.

"Just taking a walk,"Ron mumbled sleepily.

"Really? Because I was outside before, and I didn't see you out there,"Harry said.

"Oh, well.....I guess I was on the other side of the grounds or something,"Ron said.

"Is there something that you're not telling me Ron?"Harry asked suspiciously.

"No! Of course not, why would I keep anything from you?"Ron replied, laughing nervously.

Harry sighed. "Fine, I won't force you to tell me, but I know that you're hiding something."

"Believe what you want, but the truth is, I'm not hiding anything from you,"Ron lied, looking everywhere but at Harry.

"Sure you aren't,"Harry said sarcastically. "Ron, you've been my best friend for 7 years, I can tell when you're lying. But whatever, I don't really care, I'm going to sleep." He rolled up his homework and put it into his bookbag, removed his glasses, and lay back onto his bed, closing his eyes.

Ron just lay on his bed silently; he couldn't sleep. He tried counting sheep, then switched to owls, but his eyes still remained open. Finally, as the first ray of sunlight appeared, his eyes fluttered closed and he drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

A/N: Well, that's it for chapter 7! Hope u guys liked it! I'm sorry I took so long to update but I had to finish so many projects and presentations for school! Anywayz, I think there is only 1 or 2 chappiez left before the end, so please bear with me!


	8. Anything Is Possible

Goodbye For Now

Disclaimer: All this stuff belongs to the wonderful JK Rowling, and Warner Bros!

A/N: Thanx reviewers!

**freak4hillaryduff**- I did think about using that idea but I kinda have a different idea in my head already! Thanks for reviewing though!

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**XxChLaMyDiAkArEn**- interesting username) well, Ron didn't actually die yet you know, so...oh I'm not gonna spoil it for you or anyone else so just read this chapter please... thanks for reviewing!

**BeaumontRulz**- hey your username is so kewl! thanks 4 reviewing and here's your update btw I luv your stories so much! And u update really quickly which is awesome...I update like once every 3 months b/c I never have time(

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Anyways, here's chapter 8 thanks for being so patient u guys!

Ron sat up and stretched, wondering why his head was aching so much. Suddenly, he recalled the events from the night before, and he sighed. _Why does it always have to be me?_ He thought to himself, frustrated, as he slipped into his robes and shoes, and headed to the Great Hall for breakfast.

Harry was already sitting there, buttering a piece of toast, when Ron slumped over and sat down next to him.

"Good morning Ron,"Harry said coolly, still remembering last night, and how Ron couldn't even trust him enough to tell him what was on his mind.

"Hey Harry,"Ron replied just as coolly, picking up a blueberry muffin and taking a large bite out of it.

The two ate in silence, unaware that their fellow Gryffindors were watching them curiously, wondering what could have made the inseparable pair angry at each other.

Soon, Harry finished up his breakfast, stood up, slung his bookbag over his shoulder, and left, saying only 1 small sentence to Ron, "See you in Potions."

Ron bit his lip. He didn't want to fight with Harry all over again, but he just could NOT tell him about his plan tonight. It wasn't an easy choice; he had to choose between telling Harry the truth and listening to him go on and on about how important they both were to Hermione and how she wouldn't want him to do that, or he could just remain silent and let Harry be mad at him for who knows how long.

Finally, he decided that he couldn't go without their friendship, so he would tell Harry the truth. Now all he had to do was find him, searching the castle and grounds, in half an hour before Potions began. _Great,_ Ron thought sarcastically. _It's going to be easy looking on each damn floor and on the grounds, trying to find that short-tempered wizard, within 30 minutes time_...

Meanwhile, Harry was standing on the long bridge between the castle and the grounds, deep in thought. _Why is Ron being so secretive? Why can't he trust me anymore? _He banged his fist on the wooden rail of the bridge and exhaled loudly.

"H-Harry?" Harry spun around and saw Ron standing a few feet away from him, fidgeting nervously.

"Ron, wh—"

"Harry, I'm going to explain everything to you, but please don't say anything until I'm done, because it's not that easy for me to tell you this,"Ron interrupted. Harry nodded silently. Ron continued, "Okay, the thing is...tonight I'm going to give up all but 6 months of my life for Hermione." Harry's eyes widened but he kept his promise to remain silent until Ron was done. "I know you're going to try and stop me from doing this, but please don't Harry, because I want to do this. Why? Because I want you two to be happy, since I know you would never be happy without her in your life. I'm saving 6 months because I just want to say goodbye to everyone before I...you know. So..."he trailed off.

"Ron, I..." Harry's eyes became slightly watery. "You would do this for us?" Ron nodded. "But Ron, you have so much ahead of you, why let it all go just for this?"

"Because, meeting you two and having the both of you in my life is good enough for me. We've been through so much together, and I think I've experienced enough already, which is why I know that I can do this,"Ron said truthfully.

"Ron...you're the best mate anyone could have,"Harry said, leaning forward and wrapping Ron in a tight hug. Ron hugged him back just as tightly, letting a single tear drop down his cheek.

"No, Harry, you are,"Ron said as he pulled back.

"Me? Ron, I don't have the guts to do what you're going to do, even though I've thought about it many times. You're the only person I know who would do this,"Harry said quietly.

"Thanks,"Ron said, smiling slightly. "Come on, let's go, or we'll be late for Potions." The 2 of them headed back into the castle.

The day flew by, and soon they had already finished dinner, which was pretty quiet, and were heading back up to the Common Room. Ron stopped at the 3rd floor, where Professor Dumbledore's office was.

"Well, I guess I'll see you later then,"Ron said to Harry.

"Yeah. Good luck Ron,"Harry said sincerely, giving Ron another bone-crushing hug.

He turned around quickly and continued up the stairs, not wanting to let Ron see the tears that were flowing from his eyes. Ron watched him go, then walked along the corridor until he reached the statue.

He thought for a minute, then remembered the password that Dumbledore had told him. "Reeses Pieces,"he said, and the statue moved aside, allowing him to go up the stairs. He raised his hand to knock on the door, and as he was about to knock, Dumbledore's voice said, "Come in, Ron." _Okay...that's a little scary_, Ron thought as he entered the room.

"Good evening Ron,"Dumbledore said. "Are you ready?" Ron gulped and nodded wordlessly.

Dumbledore got up and went over to the cabinet, where he took out a potion vial and placed it on the table. Ron took out his wand and tried to hold it steady, but he wasn't doing too good.

"Relax, Ron, and take a few deep breaths." Ron inhaled and exhaled a few times, and he was able to grip the wand more firmly.

"You must not lose your grip on the wand throughout the whole process, otherwise the potion won't be done right. You will have to flick your wand 549 times (Ron's eyes widened at this) and then halfway down for the half a year that you will save. Are you sure you're ready?"

"Yes Professor, I'm ready,"Ron said in a tight voice.

"Very well,"Dumbledore said. He put a spell on the vial to keep it upright in the air. "1...2...3."

"_Lifenarus transferos_,"Ron said loudly, and he began flicking the wand, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10...he went on, counting the numbers in his head as he flicked and flicked. 51, 52, 53...

Dumbledore watched silently through his half-moon glasses, knowing that Ron would be in for a surprise when he finished.

137, 138, 139...Ron's hand began growing tired, but he kept a firm grip on it. 194, 195, 196..._Please don't be mad at me for doing this Hermione_, he thought. 246, 247, 248...Each time he flicked, a tiny drop of some sort of blue liquid formed at the top of the vial and slowly fell in, and the whole vial was emitting this blue glow. 322, 323, 324...He kept a steady rhythm of flicking, afraid that if he went too fast or too slow, then it would all go wrong. 399, 400, 401...God, his hand was getting so tired, but he kept going, for Hermione's sake. 466, 467, 468..._Less than 100 to go now_, he thought. 503, 504, 505..._Hermione better do something useful with these years!_ 547, 548, 549...and Ron flicked it down halfway and stopped. The blue glow faded. He dropped his wand and collapsed into a chair.

Dumbledore conjured up a glass of water and handed it to Ron. "Thanks,"Ron said gratefully, taking the water and draining it. He wiped the tiny beads of sweat of his forehead and sighed. "Did it work?"

"Yes, it certainly did,"Dumbledore replied, picking up the tiny vial, now filled up almost to the top with the blue liquid.

"You know, I think I'm just going to do that _lifenarus numbreus_ spell, just to check and make sure,"Ron said, picking up his wand from the ground. Dumbledore merely smiled but said nothing.

Ron glanced uncertainly at Dumbledore; it seemed like he knew something that he himself didn't. "_Lifenarus numbreus_,"he said, pointing the wand at his heart. Suddenly, everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. The pop was heard, and the tiny dots flew out of the wand so slowly that Ron felt like shaking it to make it come out quicker, but he didn't. Slowly, slowly, the dots began forming a number, which Ron knew was going to be 0.5, so he waited and waited. The dots made a 5 very slowly, so Ron knew he was right. But instead of moving to the left of the 5 to make a point and a 0, the dots flew to the right of the 5. Ron stared at them, wide-eyed. They curved down slowly and made...another 5. Then they moved to the right again and made...a 0. Ron gaped at it. There had to be some mistake. He already gave up his 550 years...hadn't he? Then, everything returned to regular speed, and the numbers floated clearly in front of him: 550. Then, they vanished with a small pop.

"P-Professor?"Ron turned to Dumbledore.

"Yes, Ronald?"Dumbledore smiled.

"I...I think there's something wrong with the wand. It made a...550 when I cast the spell."

"No no, there's nothing wrong with it,"Dumbledore replied, still smiling.

"So then, why...why isn't it a 0.5? The potion didn't work?"

"No, the potion worked."

"But I still have 550 years..."Ron said, confused.

"Indeed you do. Ronald, if I'm not mistaken, I believe that the potion... how should I put this...the potion, in a way, realized that you were doing an extremely selfless deed, all for love and friendship. I don't think that anyone who did this potion has ever had those reasons in mind as they performed it, but you did, and it showed how loyal, brave, and noble you are as a person, so it decided to let you have your life back, even after you finished the potion,"Dumbledore explained.

"The potion...has a mind of its own?"Ron asked, amazed.

"Don't forget, in the wizarding world, anything is possible,"Dumbledore said simply. Ron stood there, speechless.

"You knew this was going to happen all along sir?"Ron asked.

"I had a strong feeling about it,"Dumbledore said, smiling.

"So, Hermione gets to live, and I get to live too?"Ron asked, awed.

"Yes, Mr. Weasley. Now, I'm sure you would like to tell Mr. Potter as soon as possible wouldn't you?"

"Yes sir,"Ron almost shouted.

"All right, then you may go, and bring the potion with you, as I'm sure you would also like to get it to Ms. Granger as soon as possible. I will write you a special pass that you may show to any prefects or teachers who stop you in the halls on your way back up." Dumbledore took a vial cork out of the cabinet and pressed it onto the top of the vial, sealing it tightly. Then, he conjured up a small silver piece of paper and handed both the paper and the vial to Ron, who took them and held them as though they were fragile diamonds.

"Th-thank you so much sir,"Ron said gratefully.

"For what? You did most of the work,"Dumbledore said, smiling. "Now hurry along, if you want to avoid Mrs. Norris's patrolling on this floor."

Ron nodded and left quickly, clutching the vial and the pass in his hands. He raced down the hall and up the Great Staircase to the Fat Lady. He gasped out the password and stumbled in, tired from running at full speed up the stairs.

Harry was sitting in the Common Room, half-asleep, but when he saw a shadowy figure, he knew it had to be Ron.

"So? How did it go?"Harry asked excitedly. "I'm assuming not too bad since you're still alive and breathing."

"Harry, you will not believe what I am about to tell you,"Ron said happily.

"Come on Ron, tell me already!"

"Hermione can live, I can live, no one has to die!" Harry's mouth dropped open.

"Wha-what? Ron, stop it and tell me the truth already."

"Do I look like I'm lying Harry? Do you think I would be this excited and happy if I had to die in 6 months?"Ron said, stating the obvious.

"Oh wow Ron, that's amazing,"Harry gasped. He forced Ron to sit in the armchair. "Now tell me everything, every single tiny little detail that there is, okay? Start...now."

So Ron told Harry everything that happened, even the useless little details, and Harry listened eagerly.

Suddenly, the portrait hole opened, and Neville came charging in, looking panicked and out-of-breath.

"What's wrong Neville?"Harry asked worriedly.

"It's Hermione,"he said between gasps of air.

"Hermione?" Both Harry and Ron stood up at the same time and walked up to Neville.

"What about Hermione?"Harry asked.

"I was helping Madam Pomfrey out in the Hospital Wing when she got an owl from St. Mungo's, and they said that Hermione had collapsed and was in critical care, so I excused myself so I could come and tell you, even though no one is supposed to know yet, but I know that you two care a lot about her so I HAD to tell you,"Neville said hurriedly.

"Oh no,"Harry muttered. "Thanks so much for telling us Neville. I owe you one."

"But Harry, don't..."Neville began, but he never got a chance to finish, because Harry ran past him and out the portrait hole, Ron at his heels, clutching the potion vial. Neville turned around and followed them, trying his best to keep up, and the three of them raced to Dumbledore's office.

A/N: Okay, I'll leave you guys off with that! I'm pretty sure the next chapter will be the last, but it might take me a while to update, so PRETTY PLEASE bear with me! Also, I really REALLY wanna thank you guys for being so patient and I'm really sorry that it took me so long to update, but please review this chappie! THANKS SO MUCH! Btw, if any of you use AIM, my sn is krazydolphin99 or xHPxLuvRGurLx so feel free to chat) HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Luv u guys!

Fairywings101


	9. Not Just A Dream

Goodbye For Now

Disclaimer: All this stuff belongs to JKR and Warner Bros so don't even THINK about suing!

A/N: Thanks to my lovely reviewers! hugs and kisses lol

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Well enjoy then! Also, I'm sorry it took me so long to update but I've been swarmed with homework and all that so it took a while to write(I mean, type) this up.

"It's Hermione," he said between gasps of air.

"Hermione?" Both Harry and Ron stood up at the same time and walked up to Neville.

"What about Hermione?" Harry asked.

"I was helping Madame Pomfrey out in the Hospital Wing when she got an owl from St. Mungo's, and they said that Hermione had collapsed and was in critical care, so I excused myself so I could come and tell you, even though no one is supposed to know yet, but I know that you two care a lot about her so I HAD to tell you," Neville said hurriedly.

"Oh no," Harry muttered. "Thanks so much for telling us Neville. I owe you one."

"But Harry don't..." Neville began, but he never got a chance to finish because Harry ran past him out of the portrait hole, Ron at his heels clutching the potion vial. Neville turned around and followed them, trying his best to keep up, and the 3 of them raced to Dumbledore's office.

"Reeses Pieces!" Harry panted, out of breath, when they reached the statue, but he didn't need to say it because Dumbledore, who always seemed to know what was going on before it even happened, was already emerging from the statue.

"Let's go." He nodded to the 3 of them, and they followed him to the Astronomy Tower, where he made a strange sort of call, and soon 4 large hippogriffs came soaring down to them, and they stopped in a line right next to the window. Dumbledore mounted one, and the others followed suit. The 4 creatures rose and flew under the dark night sky, and the 4 wizards on them sat still and waited anxiously until the hippogriffs began their descent towards St. Mungo's.

Once they got off, Dumbledore took out a small blue coin and inserted it into a small slot next to the dummy by the window that Harry, Ron, and Neville had never noticed before during their visits to St. Mungo's. They walked through the glass and found themselves, not in the waiting room of St. Mungo's, but in a room with a large white bed, and several Healers were surrounding the bed. All 4 of them moved closer to the bed and gasped in shock when they saw—

"Hermione," Harry whispered, tears welling up in his eyes. She was in a terrible state: her eyes were closed and her face was pale. Some of the Healers saw Harry and gave him a little room so that he could stand next to Hermione. He reached out and took her hand, which was normally warm and soft, but was now cold and pale, just like her face and the rest of her body.

"Is she..." Neville began.

A Healer looked up and said, "No, she's not gone yet, but we need to make her conscious as quickly as possible. Did any of you bring the potion?" she asked, referring to the Life-Exchanging Potion that Dumbledore had told her about in advance.

Ron held his hand out and gave it to her. She took it and poured it into a tall, slim cup, which she then put against Hermione's lips. Another Healer parted her lips slightly, and the blue liquid slowly dripped into her mouth.

The Healer tipped the cup until every last drop was in Hermione's mouth. Then, they all stood back and waited, Harry still holding onto Hermione's hand.

Slowly, very slowly, Harry felt Hermione's hand become slightly less cold, but only slightly. He held it tightly in his shaking hands, lifted it up, and planted a small kiss on her palm. Then, he just held her hand against his cheek and waited.

"Er...Professor, is the potion supposed to work quickly or does it take a lot of time?" Ron asked worriedly.

"It takes time Ronald, and if I'm not mistaken, I believe in Hermione's case, since she is unconscious, it will take a few days, at the most a few months, perhaps between 3-5 months," Dumbledore answered solemnly.

"I'm not leaving her side for one moment," Harry said immediately.

Dumbledore nodded. "Of course. I'm not going to force you to come back to class for the time being if you do not wish to." Harry nodded silently.

"C-can we stay too?" Neville asked in a small voice. Dumbledore glanced at him and Ron.

"Certainly, if you would like to, but please do not inform anyone else about this, because I'm sure there are many of Miss Granger's friends that would like to see her, but I won't allow anyone else besides you three," Dumbledore said. "Agreed?" They nodded.

Dumbledore headed for the door. "If you'll all excuse me, I need to talk with Cornelius Fudge about something. Good day." And with that, he left swiftly. The Healers glanced at each other, and decided to just leave the 3 of them with Hermione, so they left the room silently.

Ron exhaled loudly, Harry didn't move at all, and Neville sat down onto a nearby chair. "So..." he began, trying to ease the anxiety.

"Thank you for everything Neville. You've been a great friend to us all these years, someone that we could count on," Harry said quietly, and Ron nodded in agreement.

Neville shrugged. "You guys are my closest friends. I mean, Dean and Seamus are all right, but when I'm really in need of help, you guys are always there." There was silence again. They looked down at Hermione, whose face was regaining its color again, but very slowly. The 3 of them just sat there and hoped.

Many days and nights passed, and Ron and Neville did go out of the room for a while to eat their meals properly, but nothing they did could make Harry leave Hermione's side, so in the end, they brought the food to him.

A whole month slowly crept past, and Hermione showed only slight improvement in her health, and she was still unconscious. The others finally managed to convince Harry to leave her side for just a while so that, as Ron put it, "your hand won't get permanently stuck to hers." But Harry made them promise that if she became conscious again, they would immediately contact him.

Harry waited the whole entire summer for her to wake up. He didn't even attend his Hogwarts Graduation Ceremony. On the morning of her birthday, September 19th, he came into the room, carrying a large bouquet of flowers, and a small blue box. When he woke up that day, he had a strange feeling in his stomach, and he realized that he'd always get that feeling whenever something special was about to happen that day. So he excused himself from work that day, and Ginny was put in as the replacement Seeker for their game that day.

He slowly approached Hermione's bed. He watched her sleeping face, which had gained most of its color back. He sat down and reached for her hand, which felt almost as warm as it felt when she had been awake. _Time passes by so quickly_, Harry thought to himself. _Just a few months ago, I was sitting with Hermione on the rooftop of this building, afraid to tell her how much I love her, and now those months just flew by_. He sighed and rested his head on her pillow, giving her a light peck on her cheek. He soon fell asleep.

Suddenly, Hermione's hand moved. Her fingers wove their way through his and she held onto it tightly. Harry immediately glanced up. Her face showed no sign of consciousness, but her hand had moved. He wanted to just stand up and yell with joy, but he resisted the urge. Instead, he just gazed at her face again, something which he had been doing ever since he woke up.

"Harry,"a voice spoke so softly that when Harry heard it the first time, he thought it was just his imagination. "Harry," the voice repeated. He looked at Hermione's lips; they were moving slowly.

"Hermione?"Harry gasped. "Was that you?" Her lips began moving again, and he leaned close to her so that he could hear. "Of course it was me, silly," she said softly and slowly. Tears began trickling down Harry's cheeks, and he grasped her hand tightly. "Hermione, are you awake? Can you open your eyes?"

"I want to, but I'm afraid that this is all just a dream and that when I do, you won't be there,"Hermione whispered.

"I'm here Hermione, and I'm real,"Harry said anxiously. "Please, open your eyes." Slowly, slowly, slowly, she opened her eyes, and the first thing that she saw was one image that she'll never forget, because she hadn't seen it for months: Harry's face, wet with tears, but still smiling down at her, grinning widely from ear to ear. She began crying uncontrollably, and Harry's smile turned into worry.

"Hey Hermione, don't cry," he said soothingly, brushing her tears away. "Is my face that ugly that you couldn't resist crying?" Hermione sniffled and smiled up at him.

"You're still the same, aren't you?"she asked. "Still silly but sweet, just like I remembered." Harry just smiled and hugged her tightly, inhaling the familiar scent of her hair. When they finally pulled back, he reached over to the table and grabbed the bouquet, handing it to her. "Happy Birthday Hermione."

Hermione couldn't stop smiling. "Thanks Harry. This means so much to me." Suddenly, the door burst open and Ron, Neville, Professor Dumbledore, all the other professors, and the healers came in, Ron carefully carrying a huge birthday cake. They all crowded around Hermione's bed as she sat up and Harry scooted as close to her as possible to make room for the others.

They all sang Happy Birthday to her and Dumbledore snapped his fingers, and instantly, the cake was split into individual pieces, one for each of them. Ron immediately began digging into his, and asking if anyone was on a diet and didn't want theirs.

Soon, the room quieted down, and Harry slowly took the small blue box out of his pocket. (A/N: You all know what's next! Sorry if this part's cheesy!) He knelt down on one knee and held the box out. "Hermione," he began. "When I met you that first day on the train, I knew instantly that you were someone special, and you wouldn't be just another one of my ordinary friends. And it turned out that I was right. You're my angel, the one who always knew how to get me and Ron out of trouble at Hogwarts, and hopefully will still do that in the future." She smiled and rolled her eyes. "I really don't know what else to tell you, because I have told you everything already, all my secrets, all my fears, so there's just one thing left to tell, or rather, ask you. Hermione, will you marry me?" There was silence in the room, although everyone knew the answer already.

"There's really only one obvious answer to your question," Hermione said, smiling tearfully. "Of course I will."

**:THE END:**

A/N: Well, that's it for this story, and I would make an epilogue about their marriage, but there's already a lot of great stories that end like that, so I'm just ending mine here. I really hope you all enjoyed this story, because I really enjoyed writing it, and I know that the title doesn't really match the story that much, but I've decided to create an alternate ending for this story, which will fit with the title better. I'll get to working on it as soon as I can, so be on the lookout for it sometime in the next few months! Just in case you guys have any questions or something, leave it in the review along with your email address, or IM me at krazydolphin99.

Love Always,

**Fairywings101**


	10. Alt Ending: Goodbye For Now

**Goodbye For Now**

Disclaimer: All belongs to JK Rowling!

A/N: Well I'm back again, now with the alternate ending for this story. **WARNING** though: it is sweet, but in a very sad way. And now, to thank all you kool reviewers!

**Tamar-Shakira**- Thanks so much 4 the review! I really appreciate it, and your stories are really amazing too :)

**Spiral5**- Hey thanks 4 pointing that mistake out to me! I don't think I'll be going back and editing it, but now I won't make that same mistake again, so thanks :)

**Hellokitty14**- Thanks yeah I love drama too! lol well here's the alt ending :)

**Miranda G. Potter**- Thanks 4 the review! Hope u like this chapter :)

**LadyOfRandomnessThe1st**- Hey thanks and _don't worry _your grammar doesn't stink lol :) Enjoy this!

**Dolce Saito**- Thanks for answering my question from before and I hope u do write some Hhr stories, that would be awesome and I'd be one of the first ones to read them :)

**purple-shoe**- Thanks a lot 4 the review! Can't wait for an update from u also :)

**karyna**- Hey thanks and omg miss u so much too :)

**marmalady**- Thanks and I wish I could be as open-minded about this as u are, because I could never read hhr and rhr at the same time! So I salute u! lol don't mind my weirdness please :)

**evanescencerks**- Thanks 4 the review! I'm still considering whether or not to write a sequel, because I've gotta go to SHSAT test prep the whole entire summer, so I don't know if I'll have time to update a lot. If I do make a sequel, of course I'll make it about their wedding :)

So now, on with the ending! By the way, it starts off from a part in the chapter before, so don't be freaked out that you're reading the same part again! But if you prefer happy endings like I said before, then just stick with the chapter before this! Otherwise, enjoy!

XXXXXXXXXX

"Harry," a voice spoke so softly that when Harry heard it the first time, he thought it was just his imagination. "Harry," the voice repeated. He looked at Hermione's lips, they were moving slowly.

"Hermione?"Harry gasped. "Was that you?" Her lips began moving again, and he leaned close to her so that he could hear. "Of course it was me, silly," she said softly and slowly. Tears began trickling down Harry's cheeks, and he grasped her hand tightly. "Hermione, are you awake? Can you open your eyes?"

"I want to, but I'm afraid that this is all just a dream and that when I do, you won't be there,"Hermione whispered.

"I'm here Hermione, and I'm real,"Harry said anxiously. "Please, open your eyes." Slowly, slowly, slowly, she opened her eyes, and the first thing that she saw was one image that she'll never forget, because she hadn't seen it for months: Harry's face, wet with tears, but still smiling down at her, grinning widely from ear to ear. She began crying uncontrollably, and Harry's smile turned into worry.

"Hey Hermione, don't cry," he said soothingly, brushing her tears away. "Is my face that ugly that you couldn't resist crying?" Hermione sniffled and smiled up at him.

"You're still the same, aren't you?"she asked. "Still silly but sweet, just like I remembered." Harry just smiled and hugged her tightly, inhaling the familiar scent of her hair. When they finally pulled back, he reached over to the table and grabbed the bouquet, handing it to her. "Happy Birthday Hermione."

Hermione couldn't stop smiling. "Thanks Harry. This means so much to me." Suddenly, the door burst open and Ron, Neville, Professor Dumbledore, all the other professors, and the healers came in, Ron carefully carrying a huge birthday cake. They all crowded around Hermione's bed as she sat up and Harry scooted as close to her as possible to make room for the others.

They all sang Happy Birthday to her and Dumbledore snapped his fingers, and instantly, the cake was split into individual pieces, one for each of them. Ron immediately began digging into his, and asking if anyone was on a diet and didn't want theirs.

"All right then, let's give the 4 of them a bit of time to chat," Dumbledore said as they all got up and began leaving Harry, Ron, Neville, and Hermione alone.

"Hey Neville, thanks for being here with us this whole time. I don't think I've ever met a more loyal friend than you," Hermione said gratefully, reaching up to hug Neville, who returned the hug with an awkward pat on her back. "Just glad you're all right Hermione," he replied, smiling.

Neville stepped back, and Ron approached her. "Well, er...yeah, glad to have you back Hermione," he said, hesitated, then stuck out his hand.

"Ron, you've known me for seven years, and you're still going to pull that 'I'd-Feel-Too-Weird-To-Hug-You-So-I'm-Just-Shaking-Your-Hand' act?" Hermione asked, rolling her eyes before swatting his hand away and pulling him into a choking hug. Harry and Neville snickered as they watched Ron turn bright red.

"Well then, any plans for a wedding?" Neville asked, grinning at Harry and Hermione, who both blushed.

"I believe that's up to Mr. Potter isn't it?" Hermione looked up at Harry, smiling, and Harry nudged her back. Ron pretended to throw up at their "over-flirtiness".

"I think we'll leave you two lovey-dovey ones alone. Come on, Neville, let's go apparate back to my place and tell my mum the good news. Also, I think that a young lady by the name of Ginny will be quite pleased to see a certain someone once we get there," Ron said, winking at Neville, and they both left quickly.

"Wow...Neville and Ginny?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, you've missed quite a lot actually," Harry said.

"Well, I certainly hope I won't be missing anything else from now on," Hermione said, snuggling close to Harry as he put his arm around her, and soon they both fell asleep.

XXXXX**3 MONTHS LATER**XXXXX

"Ron, must I remind you for the millionth time that I absolutely _despise_ snowball fights?" Hermione could barely get the word 'fights' out before Ron and Harry simultaneously attacked her with multiple snowballs.

Her shriek echoed throughout the park as she ran through the newly fallen December snow, trying to dodge the flying snowballs.

"Hermione, over here!" Ginny's voice said hastily, and an arm reached out and pulled Hermione behind a huge boulder, shielding her from Ron and Harry's attacks.

"Thanks Ginny, I owe you. I really can't believe their nerve! But then again, they hardly ever listen to what I say, so I can't do much about it." Hermione sighed dramatically, and they giggled when they saw that the other two were desperately trying to find them.

Hermione charmed the snow to create an enormous pile of snowballs for Ginny to use. Ginny jumped up, and with Hermione's help, got revenge on Harry and Ron for the snowball assault on Hermione before. Then, she crouched back down and gave Hermione a high-five.

Harry and Ron joined Hermione and Ginny by the boulder, and the 4 of them headed to the nearest café for some hot chocolate. While they were waiting inside, Professor McGonagall suddenly appeared next to them, and they all stood up immediately.

"What's going on, Professor?" Hermione asked.

Professor McGonagall first put a Memory Charm on all the Muggles in the café to prevent them from remembering her apparation, then she turned her attention back to the 4. "First, remember I said you no longer need to call me 'Professor' anymore, right? And second, you're needed at St. Mungo's, Hermione."

"Really? If they needed me to fill in for someone, wouldn't a Healer have come to get me?" Hermione asked curiously.

Professor McGonagall sighed. "No, you're not needed to fill in for anyone, it's about you actually, and I'm sorry to say, it's not very good news." Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny glanced at each other worriedly, then followed McGonagall out of the restaurant and into an alley, where they were able to apparate to St. Mungo's without anyone seeing.

Once they arrived there, Hermione rushed to Healer Toffwich, since she was the one who conducted the monthly tests on her, to make sure that the catonen or any other disease wasn't in her body.

"Healer Toffwich, please tell me, is something wrong with me? Did something show up on the test?" Hermione said quickly, her heart pounding as she gripped Harry's hand tightly.

"Hermione, I know this will be quite a shock, but I have to tell you. Your latest test shows that there is a small portion of the catonen virus still in your body. Now, we will be able to find a treatment for this, but I did want to inform you of it first so that it won't be an even bigger shock later on." The healer's words rung in her ears; the very words that she wished she would never have to hear again. Suddenly, she felt light-headed, so Harry guided her into a nearby chair and she sunk into it.

"Hermione, please don't worry. I'm sure we will be able to find a treatment, like I said before," Healer Toffwich tried to comfort her.

"I know. It's just...oh never mind. Thank you for telling me about this," Hermione said quietly. Harry and the others glanced at her worriedly.

She looked at them and smiled. "Really, I'll be fine," she insisted, although she wasn't even that sure herself.

XXXXX**4 MONTHS LATER**XXXXX

Harry entered the room, swallowing hard so that he wouldn't cry. Hermione was lying on the hospital bed, sleeping. She looked just like the way she was before Ron had created the potion; her face was deathly pale and below her eyes, there were small dark patches of bluish-black, as if she hadn't slept in weeks.

Harry tried to control himself but he couldn't, and a tear slid down from each eye. He walked over and sat down next to her, clasping her hand in his own. She slowly awoke at his touch, and smiled weakly up at him.

"Hey there Harry," her voice was so soft and weak that Harry had to lean close to her lips to hear it.

"Hermione, why didn't the treatment work? Healer Toffwich promised that it would," Harry said, frustrated.

"Harry, please don't blame her, it's not her fault. The virus had already spread too much to be treated, that's all," Hermione said.

"_That's all?_" Harry repeated angrily. "That's not all Hermione! You're dying here for goodness sake, and there's nothing that I or any of us can do about it!"

"Harry, please don't be angry," Hermione pleaded. Harry's face softened at the sound of her voice.

"I'm sorry Hermione," he said quietly. "It's just, this is the 2nd time the catonen affected you. And this time, I have to sit here and watch you grow weaker and weaker, knowing that I can't do anything about it." He sighed.

"You know how much I love you, don't you?" Hermione asked, reaching up and gently touching his cheek. Harry nodded. "And you love me, don't you?" Harry nodded. "Then you have to listen to me when I tell you that none of this is you fault Harry. It's no one's fault. It just happened this way, okay?" Harry sadly nodded again. Hermione smiled up at him, and he couldn't help smiling back down at her, even though inside, he was slowly crumbling into pieces. He leaned down and hugged her tightly.

"Can you please do me a favor Harry?" Hermione asked.

"What is it?"

"Take me for a walk on the beach, one last time," Hermione replied.

"Hermione, you're making it sound like you're going to..." Harry couldn't bear to say the word.

"You know that I'll have to, eventually. And I want to make sure you're ready when that time comes. So, will you take me?"

"Are you allowed to be out of bed?"

"Well, no. But please Harry, take me there. The beach has always been my place of comfort, ever since I was a little girl," Hermione said. "Really, I'm not as weak as I look right now. I can walk fairly well."

Harry shut his eyes, trying to decide what to do. He ran a hand through his hair, which had become a habit of his now. Finally, he opened his eyes again. "All right. I'll take you Hermione. Come on." He stood up and took her hand, and she slowly sat up, placed her feet on the ground, and stood up shakily.

Harry apparated them to the beach that Hermione had always gone to as a child. The ocean waves crashed down onto the shore, and gulls flapped their wings loudly in the sky. Hermione closed her eyes and inhaled the salty scent of the ocean, smiling to herself. Harry saw how happy she was to be back at the beach, and he smiled also.

He took off his shoes and socks, she took his hand and they walked slowly to the shore, where the small waves danced around their bare feet. Then, they walked back up to the sand and Hermione sat down, Harry following her. In the sand, using her finger, she slowly wrote: HARRY+HERMIONE ALWAYS. Then, she took Harry's hand and pressed it into the sand to make a print, and she did the same with her own hand, right next to his hand print. They lay back onto the sand, and Harry held onto Hermione's hand. They didn't say much to each other, just being in each other's company was enough for the both of them.

After a while, Hermione suddenly spoke, in a weak and soft voice. "Harry, I think...it's time." Harry sat straight up. "What? How do you know?"

"Well, this may sound crazy, but I can sort of feel it within me. Let's just stay here like this." Harry nodded and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him as though shielding her from harm. Once again, tears slid down his face, but he didn't bother to wipe them. He could hear Hermione sniffling softly, and he rocked her back and forth gently, wiping her tears away every once in a while.

"I love you Harry, and I'll always, always be with you," Hermione said softly. Harry shut his eyes, letting more tears flow out.

"I love you too Hermione. More than you'll ever know," Harry said quietly. Eventually, he took a look at her face, which he had been trying not to look at because if he did, he would have to admit to the fact that she was really, truly gone. Her eyes were closed, and her lips were curved into a small smile. He slowly lay her back down on the sand, leaned down, and pressed his lips against hers. Then, he brushed light kisses on all her facial features.

He apparated them back to St. Mungo's, where he called for the Healers and told them. Healer Toffwich heard the news and began sobbing uncontrollably, since she had developed a mother-daughter-like relationship with Hermione over the past months. Harry went back into the room, but only stood by the door as he watched the Healers take her.

"Aren't you going to see her one last time before we take her?" One of them asked.

Harry shook his head. "No it's fine. We've already said our goodbyes." The Healer looked slightly confused, but nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

"So, when would you like the funeral to be, Mr. Potter?" Healer Toffwich asked.

"How about on the first day of May? May was her favorite month," Harry said after a bit of thought. Toffwich nodded and went to write it down.

"We'll inform all her friends and family about it, so you don't have to worry," she said kindly. Harry nodded. "Thank you so much."

XXXXXXXXXX

"We are gathered here today to honor a young woman, Hermione Jane Granger, whose life was taken away by the disease known as catonen. She always received top grades at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which her 7th year schoolmates graduated from last June, and..." Harry's thoughts drowned out what Dumbledore was saying at the service. He glanced around and felt a small bubble of happiness swell inside of him at the sight of how many people had shown up. Family, friends, former schoolmates who didn't even know Hermione that well, and even most of the Hogwarts ghosts had arrived to say farewell to her. _Hermione would be so happy if she saw how many people really do care for her and love her_, Harry thought as he watched Nearly Headless Nick quickly brush a silvery, almost transparent tear from his eye.

Finally, it was over and various people were coming up to Harry and giving him their condolences. He felt someone tapping his shoulder, so he turned around to see none other than Malfoy.

"What are you doing here?" Harry asked, his eyes narrowing.

"No need to be rude Potter. I came here for the same reason as everyone else: to say bye to Granger."

"Her name is _Hermione_."

"Fine, Hermione then. I don't suppose you know this Potter, but a while ago, she sent a letter to me, and she told me the truth about why she had left Hogwarts in the first place. She said that, as one last favor to her, if I was willing to make up with you and Weasel-I mean, Weasley. So that's another reason why I came. I never hated her as much as I used to hate you two, you know, so that's why I actually listened to her," Draco explained.

"Oh," was all Harry could say.

"Yes, so...I'm sorry for what I did in the past, and can we just forget all that and be friends?" Draco asked quietly.

Harry studied him for a moment, then thought about his decision. "Apology accepted, but we're starting out as _acquaintances_, all right? Along the road, we'll see if we can turn it into _friends_."

"Fine with me." He extended his hand, and Harry shook it, but they both let go quickly, still not very comfortable with each other. "Well, gotta go. I'm honestly very sorry about Gra–Hermione." And with that, he disapparated.

Harry waited until all the others left, then he approached her gravestone. Thoughts swirled around in his mind, of all the times he'd had with her, from their first-year train ride to their last walk on the beach, until all his thoughts blended together into one huge memory of her. He gazed out at the enormous Hogwarts lake, which everyone else thought of as a strange and murky place, but only Hermione appreciated that place for its beauty and mysteriousness.

_Hermione may not be with me anymore, but her love is like the wind_, Harry thought, remembering that quote from a muggle movie that Hermione once begged him to see with her. _It was called 'A Walk to Remember' or something. But it's just like the movie said, I can't see her love, but I can feel it._

He glanced up at the blue sky, transforming into pink and purple, Hermione's favorite colors, as the sun slowly set. _I love you so much, Hermione. I suppose I have to say goodbye to you, for now at least. For now, I won't be able to see your wonderful smile, hear your heartwarming laugh, smell your strawberry-scented hair, taste your sweet cinnamon-flavored lips, or feel your warm hand fit perfectly against mine. But I promise that you'll always have your special place in my heart, and nothing could ever change that._

And as he watched a small, bright shooting star fly over him and disappear into the clouds, he could've sworn that he heard a young woman's familiar voice whispering to him, _I love you too._

_I'm here without you baby,_

_But you're still on my lonely mind._

_I think about you baby,_

_And I dream about you all the time..._

**Here Without You**-3 Doors Down

A/N: Well, that's basically my little alternate ending, which (don't deny it!) was partly cheesy at the end. Also, I was just listening to that song right now, and I just couldn't resist adding some of the lyrics in at the end. So what did you think? Please review and tell me your opinion, even if you didn't like it just tell me so I'll know! I'm sure that this didn't make you cry or anything like that, but I still hope you enjoyed reading it! I totally loved writing this story, and I'll be back soon with a new story, as soon as I have it all set up.

With lotsa love,

FAIRYWINGS101


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